Onkyo C-7030 Compact Disc Player (Black)

I found nary a decent review on this model... in fact the ONLY thing I found on the c7030 was the same regurgitated marketing copy re-pasted on differant websites. Annoying. One thing that stood out about this unit's specs besides its budget pricetag was its weight. To me that meant a decent power supply and good build quality (it is fairly heavy for a cd player). So because of this, along with its other intersting features (for the price) I decided to order it.

Connected to my budget HK3490 it has an unbudget sound. Clear highs. Smooth mids. Tight bass. Realistic soundstage. Uncolored. Listening to Nora Jones as I write this and she sounds like shes in the room with me. I initially had my sights on the HD990 to match my receiver but they recently upped the price on that unit and I was left with the distinct impression that there were skipping/build quality issues from some reviews despite the audiophile sound quality specified in most reviews...Read more

I was looking for a quality single drawer cd player and ran across the C-7030. Simple controls, single play drawer, sounds great and resonably priced. I now hear background music and vocals on cd's I've had for years that I hadn't heard before. This cd player looks great, is simple to use and is great addition to my system. Having used a DVD player for years to play my cd's I can safely say a dedicated cd player is worth investing in.

I'm an amateur audiophile and have listened to many (many) CD players of all stripes. I know what music is supposed to sound like and I've never thought that CDs did a good job of recreating the musical experience. My primary rig is a dedicated Rotel transport with a Musical Fidelity A3-24 DAC (not a cheap combo) with JPSLabs wiring, etc. Even with that setup, I still thought my system sounded better via my modest VPI turntable. Well, that was until I took a listen to this inexpensive Onkyo unit to replace a secondary CD player. Onkyo has nailed it: Spacious, sparking highs without any "tizzy" stuff, incredible low-level detail; real bass; unit is absolutely quiet. Hey, this sounds like music! I hear that Onkyo is coming out with a much higher-end C-7070 dedicated CD player (prob $700), but for $200, this unit is an amazing bargain. I'm listening to the Onkyo directly through the headphone jack and, as said, I'm blown away. BTW, you'll need at least 48 hrs of continuous...Read more